My last break, I had the whole month of March off. I landed in Raleigh and went to stay with friends for a few days. They had graciously stored my truck and my things for me. Yes, I have awesome friends. I sorted through my stuff until I had only what I needed (and only what would fit in the truck) and got rid of everything else. Its a very good feeling to have so few things!
I went to Camp Lejeune to pick up a friend who was getting out of the Marines and take him home to Boise, Idaho. His paperwork got messed up, so he didn't end up getting out until I was all ready back at work. So instead, we went to Washington DC for a weekend. In DC we played games and visited with friends. We returned to Camp Lejeune and I stayed for a few days. I got to visit their beautiful beach, make some friends, and relax.
After that I drove home to Wyoming and moved my things into storage in my mom's basement. I spent time with my family there, and had dinner with an old friend. My niece had Good Friday off from school, so she and I painted Easter eggs, went mini-golfing, and got our nails done to match my yellow truck! Then I went to Laramie to see my friends there, and go to lunch with my little brother and his girlfriend. I left Laramie and drove to Socorro, New Mexico to see more friends. In Socorro I got to eat at Socorro Springs Brewry (yummy!) and went to visit Fort Craig.
I took the scenic route back to work and stopped to walk up the Catwalk National Recreation Trail which is a short, easy, but stunning and unique trail. Much of its length is on steel walkways suspended over the creek as it cataracts through this beautiful, narrow canyon. That night I camped at Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument. The next morning, I woke up, saw some petroglyphs at the campground, and hiked up to the cliff dwellings. I think I was the first visitor up there that morning. Its a peaceful and serene little hike up a small, verdant canyon. I enjoyed the drive through the Gila National Forest and then drove to City of Rocks State Park for the afternoon. I camped that night at the mouth of Dog Canyon outside of Ruidoso. I really want to find the time to hike this canyon sometime. In the morning, I visited White Sands National Monument, which is among the most beautiful landscapes I've ever seen. I wanted to spend more time there, but I had to get back to work at last.
The past month or so on crew have been very busy for me. I started out on the morning shift in the Recorder, learning how to run our QC system out in the field. Now, I'm on the afternoon shift in the Recorder, and the night shift in Q-Village (our base of operations). Adjusting to the night work has been hard for me, but the work has to be done at night in order for the morning guys in the field to know what points need to be reshot. If they don't get the information first thing in the morning, its often too expensive to go back and get the shots that were no good. I'm working closely with our Cheif QC, and learning a great deal from him. To minimize the hazards of driving at night, they have people who work in Q-Village at night staying at the KOA less than 2 miles away. I get a darling cabin with a kitchen and a bathroom all to myself! Now if only I had time to cook...
This has been a bad workset for accidents. I was hit by a door that got caught in the wind and knocked off the stairs of the Recorder a few days ago. I didn't break anything, and luckily only came away with bruises and sprains. One of our workers was hit and killed by a car in Carlsbad as he was returning a grocery cart to a store. Last night the man who drove our water truck was in an accident and killed while driving the truck. Everyone is trying to stay safe and be careful, here.
I'm going to Vegas for a wedding next week. But for now, you all are up to date.
